Wednesday (Nov. 6) Meek Mill, Malcom Jenkins of the Philadelphia Eagles and the Player’s Coalition aired the first of a series of PSAs in an effort to bring attention to victims of police brutality and gun violence. Last week, the Philadelphia rapper and Eagles’ star safety hosted a town hall to open a discussion about Philadelphia policing. With the new “Everyone’s Child” PSA series, they expand their efforts to represent stories across the nation.
The first video centers around Danroy “DJ” Henry, who was fatally shot at 20 years old on Oct. 17, 2010 by a police officer in Mount Pleasant, NY. Henry played football at Pace University and dreamed of playing in the National Football League.
“He knew the importance of respect. He knew the importance of offering a hand and that is something that we are so proud of, even today,” Angella Henry, the young man’s mother, said in the PSA. “One of the most important things that we can do as a community is to have better communication and better love and respect for people.”
The series will continue to educate football fans about gun violence and police brutality around the country, highlighting the victims’ parents that are deeply affected by these tragedies.
“We have a responsibility to use our platforms to unite people and foster positive change in our communities, but we can’t achieve that goal without education,” Jenkins said in a press statement. “We want this PSA to generate productive dialogue between people of all backgrounds, so we can start to bridge the communication gap and work together to end these injustices.”
“We are in this together,” Mill wrote on Twitter, sharing the clip.
Besides the Championships rapper’s Philadelphia-based efforts, Mill has contributed to prison reform this year through REFORM Alliance. Mill launched the organization earlier this year with Jay-Z, Patriots owner Robert Kraft, 76ers co-owner Michael Rubin, Nets co-owner Clara Wu Tsai and more, with CNN’s Van Jones leading the effort as CEO.
Watch the “Everyone’s Child” PSA below, shared by Meek Mill, Malcom Jenkins and the Player’s Coalition.